The disclosure relates generally to power generation systems, and more particularly, to a power generation system including a wear pad system for turbine combustion systems and a method for coupling a wear pad into a turbine combustion system.
Power generation systems, including gas turbines are widely used. A conventional gas turbine system typically includes, inter alia, a compressor, a combustor, a turbine section, and a transition piece for connecting the flow of the combustor to the turbine section. During operation of the turbine, components experience vibrations which may result in structural wear to those components and/or the turbine itself. In the transition piece of the turbine, wear pads or spacers have been employed to prevent components of the transition piece from becoming worn due to vibrations. For example, wear pads are used in the transition piece between the transition piece (TP) forward ring and the impingement sleeve which surrounds the TP forward ring. While these wear pads are generally successful in preventing wear caused by vibration, it is expensive and difficult to maintain and replace them.
Generally, replacing the wear pads between impingement sleeves and TP forward rings requires disassembling the transition piece and the combustor in order to remove the worn wear pads and insert new wear pads. Impingement sleeves have been manufactured such that impingement sleeves include two or more parts to allow for disassembly of the impingement sleeve when replacing wear pads.